Volvo has revealed buyers of the EX30 in the US will have to wait another year before getting their hands on the electric SUV. The automaker is changing plans, moving manufacturing from China to Belgium after the US implemented new tariffs on Chinese-made EVs.
While this shift will delay the release of the EX30 in the US, it is not expected to have an impact on the debut of the electric SUV in Canada, and the first deliveries are still scheduled to begin later this year.
According to Volvo, the delay in the US launch is due to the time it will take to ramp up production at the Volvo plant in Ghent, Belgium. In a statement to Drive Tesla, Volvo said the shift is being made “due to changes in the global automotive landscape, the U.S. introduction of the EX30 will be delayed while we ramp up production at our plant in Ghent, Belgium, with a 2025 target delivery date to be announced.”
A Volvo spokesperson also confirmed with us that “we do not expect other markets, including Canada, to be affected by this decision.” However, Canada is now considering implementing similar tariffs, although the timing of these is still up in the air.
Apart from the delay, there have been understandable concerns about the price. Many people were impressed by the EX30’s starting price of US$36,245 (C$53,700 in Canada), given its respectable driving range of 275 miles (443km). However, Volvo reached the price point largely because it was going to manufacture the car in China, where labor costs are lower, and using facilities owned by the company’s parent company, Geely Group.
However, with production moving to Europe, questions remain about whether the starting price will remain the same.
On the other hand, the starting price for the EX30 was going to rise significantly, anyway, as the current US administration slapped a new 100 percent tariff on EVs imported from China. The main targets of the new tariffs might have been companies like BYD, but legacy brands with Chinese production factories like Volvo will also be affected.
This isn’t the first delay for the EX30. European buyers waited for their EX30s too, but that was due to software glitches.
